Authors: Judy Angelo
NAUGHTY
BY NATURE
JUDY
ANGELO
The
NAUGHTY AND NICE Series
Volume
1
Copyright
© 2012 Judy Angelo
Lyons
Publishing Limited
All rights reserved. No part of this book
may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, electronic or otherwise (mechanical,
photocopying, recording or stored in a retrieval system) without the prior
written consent of the Publisher. Such action is an infringement of the
copyright law.
This book is a work of fiction. The names,
characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or
have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, is
entirely coincidental.
Author
contact:
[email protected]
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get updates on new books by Judy Angelo subscribe at
http://www.judyangelo.blogspot.com
The
BAD BOY BILLIONAIRES Series
by
Judy Angelo
Volume
1 -
Tamed
by the Billionaire
Volume
2 -
Maid
in the USA
Volume
3 -
Billionaire's
Island Bride
Volume
4 -
Dangerous
Deception
Volume
5 -
To
Tame a Tycoon
Volume
6 -
Sweet
Seduction
Volume
7 -
Daddy
by December
Volume
8 -
To
Catch a Man (in 30 Days or Less)
BAD
BOY BILLIONAIRES, Mega-Collection - Vols. 1 - 8
BAD
BOY BILLIONAIRES, Collection I - Vols. 1 - 4
BAD
BOY BILLIONAIRES, Collection II - Vols. 5 - 8
(Two
free stories in the Mega-collection;
one
free story in each, Collection I and II;
purchase
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The
NAUGHTY AND NICE Series
Now
available:
Volume
1 -
Naughty
by Nature
Coming
soon:
Volume
2 - Sweet Charlotte
Volume
3 - Miss Independent
THE NAUGHTIER THE
BETTER...
Tessa Tyndale is known for her naughty nature. Although she's a high school
teacher she's no angel. She's been guilty of a prank or two. And then she
meets Wolf Spencer, gloomy and serious, the very opposite of Tessa's idea of
the ideal mate. But, strangely enough, this is the man who makes her heart
race. Now if only she can change him from grumpy to fun-loving...it's a
challenge that she's willing to take on. With Tessa, anything is possible.
Wolf Spencer is
intrigued by the petite blonde pixie he meets at his friend's wedding. But
when he tries to make friends he's surprised to find that she's not at all
interested in him. And then he realizes that she's nothing like what he'd
thought. Far from being demure, this woman is daring and bold and not at all
afraid of playing tricks on him. Wolf soon finds out that around Tessa nobody
is safe, especially not him...
NAUGHTY
BY NATURE
CHAPTER ONE
“Man, talk about a
whirlwind romance. How did you pull that off so fast? I still can’t get over
it.”
Wolf Spencer
crossed his arms as he stood by the huge mahogany desk, looking down at his
friend and business associate. Stone Hudson sat relaxed in a high-backed
leather chair and on his face was a broad smile.
“Cupid was hard at
work, that’s all I can say.” Stone chuckled as he waved Wolf over to a nearby
chair. “Let me tell you something. The day you meet that woman who will make
your life complete, you’ll know.”
You'll know. The
words echoed in Wolf’s mind. Stone had met the woman of his dreams and he’d
known right away, it seemed. Was he falling under the same kind of crazy
spell?
He pushed the
thought from his mind. He was here on business and, as far as he was
concerned, business trumped pleasure any day.
“We’ve got the
series ready, Stone. All thirteen episodes.” He reached out and dropped a
folder on the desk. "For this documentary series we made sure not to focus
only on the people but also on their environment. We’ve included lots of shots
of the landscape. I think you’ll love it.”
Stone nodded.
“I’m sure I will. Your production team never ceases to amaze me.” He picked
up the folder and read the title. “The Peoples of Canada, Volume I,” he said
aloud then he began to leaf through the pages, nodding every now and then, and
raising his eyebrows from time to time. “You’ve got a lot of good information
on the various First Nations groups and cultures. Good.”
“Yes,” Wolf said,
leaning forward. “It all starts there, then we move on to the first immigrants
then early settlement then nation building. It closes with a look at twenty-first
century immigration and its impact on modern-day Canada.”
“Good stuff and right
on time as usual. It’s always good working with you, man.” He reached out a
hand.
Wolf smiled.
“Same here.” He took Stone’s hand and gave it a quick, firm shake.
Wolf had been
doing business with Hudson Broadcasting Corporation for over six years, producing
video materials and television programming season after season. Over the years
he and Stone had become much more than business associates. In fact, they were
so close that Stone had invited him to attend his wedding all the way in South
Africa.
He’d gone, of
course, without hesitation. He would have gone to Timbuktu if Stone had
asked. He loved and respected him that much.
But what had
floored him wasn’t the fact that Stone was getting married so far away from
Canada. It was the sudden announcement of the wedding that had knocked him
back on his heels. As far as he knew, Stone hadn’t been seeing anyone. If
he’d been in a relationship Wolf would definitely have known. That wasn’t
something his friend would have kept secret.
Then Wolf traveled
to India for a few weeks to visit friends there, and the next thing he knew he
arrived back in Canada to hear a message on his machine – “Get that tux out of
the closet, Wolf. You’re going to be my best man.” And within five days of
receiving the message he was on a plane to South Africa to stand by the side of
his friend.
And it was there
that he’d seen her. The woman who made his cold and cynical heart lurch inside
his chest. A little blonde pixie who looked at him with eyes dancing with mischief.
She was the chief bridesmaid and she’d been introduced as Miss Tessa Tyndale.
“You still with
me, man?”
“Huh? Yes.” Wolf
dragged himself back to the present.
“You look like
you’ve got something on your mind.” Stone frowned at him. “What’s up?”
Feeling like a
fool, Wolf shrugged casually. “I’m cool. Don’t worry about it.” He must be
going soft in the head, sitting there daydreaming about some woman he’d only
met once.
“No, you’re not.”
Stone’s tone was adamant. “You’ve got something on your mind. Now give.”
Wolf almost glared
at his friend but then he shook his head. Stone knew what a stubborn ass he
could be sometimes. He’d felt something that day in South Africa, that
rose-colored evening when he’d met Tessa Tyndale. And he’d been denying it
ever since. Now it was time to be honest – with Stone and with himself.
“Okay, I will.”
He leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms. “Tell me about Tessa
Tyndale.”
Stone frowned and
looked confused. “Tessa? What do you want to know?”
“Everything you
can tell me about her.”
As Wolf expected,
the confusion lifted from Stone’s face and in its place was a look of
gloating. “Ahh, now I understand. Good old Cupid has struck again.”
Wolf snorted.
“You know me, Stone. I don’t believe in that crap. Love at first sight and
all that mush.”
Stone cocked an
eyebrow. “No? So why the questions about Tessa?”
“I didn’t say I
wasn’t interested. Yeah, she piqued my interest, but that doesn’t mean I’ve
gone and fallen in love with her.”
“Mmhmm,” Stone
murmured, nodding slowly and looking like he knew something Wolf didn’t.
“Maybe not, but just maybe…”
“All right, you’ve
had your fun.” Wolf uncrossed his arms and leaned forward. “What do you know
about her, Stone? Where can I find her?”
Stone chuckled.
“Okay, I’ll put you out of your misery.” He leaned back in the chair and
clasped his hands behind his head. “Her name is Tessa Tyndale and she’s
Indie’s best friend.”
“I know all that,”
Wolf said. "Of course she’s your wife’s friend. Why else would she have
been chief bridesmaid? But where is she? And how can I see her again?”
Stone shook his
head and in his eyes was a look of mock pity. “You amaze me, Wolf. It’s been
three months since the wedding and I know this thing has been burning you up
yet you’re only now asking me about Tessa? You obstinate fool, you’ve been
fighting it all this time? Why didn’t you ask me before?”
Wolf glared at
Stone. “Because I wanted to see if it was just one of those passing things. I
wanted to see if I’d forget her.”
“But you didn’t.
Instead, it got stronger.”
Wolf gave him a
rueful grin. “Yeah.” There was no use denying it. Tessa Tyndale had gotten
under his skin, a thorn that would not let him rest until he had seen her
again.
“Sorry to tell you
this, Wolf, but you’ve got it bad.” Stone was grinning openly now, looking
like he was enjoying Wolf’s dilemma. But then he wiped the smile from his face
and gave Wolf a serious look. “But let me warn you - Tessa and you are like
oil and water. That rigid, stick-in-the-mud personality of yours won’t fly
with her, I’ll tell you that now. She’s a handful, Wolf, and I don’t know if,
with your surly style, you can handle her.”
“Let me be the
judge of that,” Wolf said, although inside he was wincing at Stone’s harsh but
accurate description. “Just give me the girl’s number.”
“No can do.”
Stone reached up and began loosening his tie, and he was laughing at Wolf. “But
I can give her yours. I’ll have her call you.”
“Fine.” Wolf
shrugged and got up. “Make sure you give it to her tonight.”
“Oh, anxious, are
we?” Stone was still chuckling. “You’ve waited three whole months. You can
wait a few more days. In fact…” he pulled the tie from around his neck and
threw it over onto the sofa in typical messy-Stone fashion, “…I’ll do better
than just giving her your number. I’ll have Indie invite her over for dinner
on Sunday. Consider yourself invited, too. Then you can give her your number
yourself.”
“Sounds great.”
It was a damn good idea. His usually cranky mood was lightening at the
thought. “What time?”